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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2004

Ethnicity, acculturation and obstetric outcomes. Different risk factor profiles in low- and high-acculturation Hispanics and in white non-Hispanics.

OBJECTIVE: To compare risk factors and birth outcomes among low- and high-acculturated Hispanics and white non-Hispanics. STUDY DESIGN: Information on 1,172 women who delivered was collected in a cross-sectional study at a public hospital in Phoenix, Arizona. We compared 3 groups: low-(reference group) and high-acculturated Hispanics and white non-Hispanics. Acculturation was defined within Hispanics by predominant orientation: Latin America (low) or United States (high). RESULTS: Prevalence of substance abuse and interpersonal violence was highest in the white non-Hispanics when compared to low-acculturated Hispanics, and intermediate in the high-acculturation group. Births to women < 17 years old were highest in the high-acculturation group. Preterm labor and pregnancy-induced hypertension were more common in white non-Hispanics. Sexually transmitted disease was more likely in the high-acculturated Hispanic group. Diabetes was more common in both comparison groups, high-acculturated and white non-Hispanic. CONCLUSION: High-acculturated Hispanics, like high-risk white non-Hispanics, had more risk factors and adverse obstetric outcomes than the low-acculturated group. The acculturation process may lead to difficulty for Hispanics in the United States.

Acculturation↗
PubMed2004

Acculturation and mental health--empirical verification of J.W. Berry's model of acculturative stress.

OBJECTIVES: Many studies concerning mental health among ethnic minorities have used the concept of acculturation as a model of explanation, in particular J.W. Berry's model of acculturative stress. But Berry's theory has only been empirically verified few times. The aims of the study were to examine whether Berry's hypothesis about the connection between acculturation and mental health can be empirically verified for Greenlanders living in Denmark and to analyse whether acculturation plays a significant role for mental health among Greenlanders living in Denmark. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The study used data from the 1999 Health Profile for Greenlanders in Denmark. As measure of mental health we applied the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). Acculturation was assessed from answers to questions about how the respondents value the fact that children maintain their traditional cultural identity as Greenlander and how well the respondents speak Greenlandic and Danish. The statistical methods included binary logistic regression. RESULTS: We found no connection between Berry's definition of acculturation and mental health among Greenlanders in Denmark. On the other hand, our findings showed a significant relation between mental health and gender, age, marital position, occupation and long-term illness. CONCLUSION: The findings indicate that acculturation in the way Berry defines it plays a lesser role for mental health among Greenlanders in Denmark than socio-demographic and socio-economic factors. Therefore we cannot empirically verify Berry's hypothesis.

Acculturation↗
PubMed2001

Development of a new scale for measuring acculturation: the East Asian Acculturation Measure (EAAM).

Given the paucity of appropriate measures to assess the acculturation patterns of East Asian immigrants in the United States, a new acculturation instrument was developed and evaluated. One-hundred and fifty nonclinical East Asian immigrants (75 males and 75 females) were administered the East Asian Acculturation Measure (EAAM) and provided demographic information concerning length of stay in the United States and gender. Satisfactory reliability is reported for the four acculturation scales: assimilation, separation, integration, and marginalization. Length of stay was not associated with separation but was significantly positively associated with assimilation and integration and significantly negatively associated with marginalization. Gender was not associated with any of the acculturation scales. The findings suggest that the EAAM may be a useful tool for researchers and clinicians to investigate the acculturation patterns of East Asian immigrants.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2004

Acculturation strategies, coping process and acculturative stress.

Using structural equation modeling, this study examines the influences of motivational factors (Need for Cognitive Closure--NCC--and Decisiveness), coping strategies and acculturation strategies on levels of acculturative stress. Two groups of immigrants in Rome (Croatians n= 156 and Poles n= 179) completed a questionnaire that included scales for the various factors. Although our initial hypothesized model was not confirmed, a modified model showed that the motivational factors of NCC and Decisiveness indirectly influence acculturative stress. The modified model with good fit indices indicated that the relationship between NCC and Decisiveness are mediated by coping strategies and acculturation strategies. Specifically, NCC is associated positively with avoidance coping, which in turn is negatively associated with the host group relationships and positively with the original culture maintenance. The last two dimensions predicted lower levels of acculturative stress. Decisiveness was positively associated with the problem-oriented coping and, negatively, with emotional and avoidance coping.

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PubMed2005

Acculturation, parent-child acculturation differential, and chronic disease risk factors in a Mexican-American population.

Acculturation is typically defined in terms of individual responses to a dominant culture. In the present study, we examined the effects of different levels of acculturation among family members. Specifically, we looked at the health and risk behavior in Mexican-American children as related to a variety of psychosocial predictors, especially the differences in orientation toward Mexican- and Anglo-American cultures between them and their parents. Mother and child pairs (n = 106) noted their orientation toward both Anglo and Mexican cultures. Children's dietary and sedentary behaviors, tobacco and alcohol use (and susceptibility to use), and depressive symptoms were also measured. Males were more likely to be sedentary and consume higher levels of total fat and saturated fat, whereas girls reported higher levels of depression. Anglo-oriented youth consumed lower levels of calories from fat but also more alcohol than did their Mexican-oriented counterparts. The latter was particularly the case among those children who were relatively more Anglo oriented than were their parents. Parent-child acculturation differential in terms of the differences in Mexican orientation, in comparison, predicted susceptibility to tobacco use. However, the sum of the absolute values of these two differences predicted only lifetime alcohol use, and in a counter-intuitive direction. This familial measure of acculturation shows some promise, but additional formative research is needed to operationalize this construct.

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PubMed1989

The structure and validity of acculturation. Analysis of an acculturation scale.

This paper presents data from a study of acculturation in 291 Greek Cypriot immigrants from the general population of Camberwell, south London. Factor analysis was carried out, and factors were extracted using the maximum likelihood method and subjected to oblique rotation. The best solution was based on two highly correlated factors (0.64), which together explained 28% of the variance. The first factor appeared to represent Cultural Identification, the second, Language Mastery/Ethnocentricism. The construct validity of the factors was substantiated by analyses relating them to a range of other variables likely to be correlated with acculturation. Issues concerning the measurement of acculturation are discussed.

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PubMed1995

Development of a new scale for measuring acculturation: the Taiwan Aboriginal Acculturation Scale (TAAS).

As part of the Taiwan Aboriginal Study Project (TASP), a new acculturation scale (the Taiwan Aboriginal Acculturation Scale, or TAAS) has been developed among the aboriginal minorities of Austronesian origin in Taiwan. The design of the original 54 items was based on Milton Gordon's concept of assimilation in association with a careful consideration of cross-cultural validity. These items were administered to 144 subjects stratified by age and sex who were randomly sampled from four major Taiwanese aboriginal groups. Item analysis and factor analysis were applied to select an 18-item scale which has three subscales (factors): cultural assimilation, social assimilation, and social attitude. Results of validity and reliability studies of the TAAS were found to be acceptable. The development of TAAS demonstrates the applicability of the concept of acculturation as a process that involves changes both in attitude, and in behaviour, to non-western societies.

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PubMed2005

Re-examining whether and why acculturation relates to drinking outcomes in a rigorous, national survey of Latinos.

BACKGROUND: Fundamental limitations have hampered conclusions surrounding acculturation's effects among Latinos. This research re-examines associations between acculturation and alcohol use, addressing the most troubling of these limitations. The research also explores mediators of the association, and the dimensional structure of acculturation. METHODS: Linear regressions and scale analyses were used to analyze data from Latino adults in the U.S. (825 women, 761 men) sampled in the 1995 National Alcohol Survey. Analyses used a standard, reliable acculturation scale and well-validated drinking measures; systematically accounted for demographic covariates; and analyzed men and women separately. RESULTS: As expected, higher acculturation was positively associated with a higher probability of drinking (vs. abstinence) among women, and higher average volumes and more frequent drunkenness among female drinkers. Acculturation was unrelated to alcohol use among men. Also as expected, mediational analyses of average volume supported expectations that gender-specific drinking norms would mediate acculturation's effects (though norms did not explain acculturation's associations with either drinking status or frequency of drunkenness). Analyses investigating depressive symptoms showed no support for the acculturation-stress model. Factor analyses of the acculturation scale supported the hypothesized distinctions between linguistic acculturation, attitudinal acculturation, and the social environment of acculturation. Further, items implying more intimate exposure to Anglo culture (i.e., language use) were most strongly related to drinking outcomes among women, supporting the normative interpretation of acculturation's effects on drinking. CONCLUSIONS: Results underline acculturation's influence on alcohol consumption among Latina women, and highlight the role of drinking norms in mediating this association. Results also suggest a multidimensional view of acculturation. The article recommends further research on drinking norms and other potential mediators of acculturation's effects among Latina women.

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PubMed2000

Acculturation and health in Korean Americans.

Despite increasing research on the relationships between acculturation and health, it is unclear whether (1) ethnic group variation occurs in acculturation-health relationships, (2) acculturation components vary differently in relationship to health, (3) biculturalism has beneficial effects on health and (4) multidimensional health relationships occur with acculturation. This study examined the Korean American ethnic group, considering how acculturation was related with five dimensions of health: smoking, physical activity, fat intake, body weight, and reported health. Pretested questionnaires were mailed to a national sample with Korean American surnames, and 55% of the deliverable sample responded, producing 356 usable questionnaires. Acculturation was measured using a two-culture matrix model and Gordon's theoretical work, and showed three distinct groups (acculturated, bicultural and traditional) and four components (American structural, American cultural, Korean structural and Korean cultural). Bicultural men were least likely to smoke, while acculturated and bicultural women were more likely to smoke than traditional women. Korean structural and cultural components were related to men's smoking. Higher acculturation was related to light physical activity, but not to vigorous physical activity. Fat intake did not differ by acculturation status. Higher acculturation was associated with higher body weight and better self-reported health only in men. Higher American cultural component scores were associated with better self-reported health in men. Among Korean Americans, acculturation components varied in their relationships with health, beneficial effects of being bicultural on health were not found, and acculturation-health relationships were multidimensional. Overall, ethnic group variation in health occurred, with Korean Americans similar to some ethnic groups but different than others. Future health research and practice can benefit by acknowledging the complexity of acculturation and its multidimensional effects on health.

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PubMed1992

Acculturation and drinking patterns among U.S. Anglos, blacks, and Mexican Americans.

The relationship between acculturation, generational status/nativity and drinking patterns is examined using data from a 1988 community survey of 1286 adult regular drinkers (at least two drinks/month) in San Antonio, Texas. This sample includes 412 Anglo, 239 Black, and 635 Mexican American respondents, with Mexican Americans further classified into high, medium, and low acculturation groups using a language-use-based acculturation measure. This data set allows comparisons between racial/ethnic majority and minority groups with further comparisons between Black and Mexican American subgroups. These racial/ethnic and acculturation level comparisons highlight the effects of minority status and cultural differences between groups with regard to drinking patterns. Overall, the analyses indicate little evidence to support an 'acculturation stress' model of alcohol use, wherein the stresses of acculturation produce higher levels of alcohol consumption among moderately or higher acculturation groups. Generally, in our data, quantity and frequency consumption was somewhat higher among the least acculturated males and moderately acculturated females. Further analyses by generational status indicate heavier consumption patterns among second-generation individuals, especially among the less acculturated, though those differences were eliminated by controls. The findings highlight inadequacies of using generational status/nativity measures alone to assess acculturation level. Further, joint effects of acculturation level and generational status suggest the viability of a cultural marginality model of acculturation, though many of the effects of acculturation and generational status are explained by demographic and psychosocial factors.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Development of scales to measure dietary acculturation among Chinese-Americans and Chinese-Canadians.

OBJECTIVE: To develop simple scales to measure a Chinese immigrant's adoption of Western eating patterns (dietary acculturation). STUDY DESIGN AND PARTICIPANTS: Data are from 244 less-acculturated women of Chinese ethnicity living in Seattle, Wash, and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Interviewers collected information on sociodemographic characteristics, acculturation indices, items that reflect Western and Chinese dietary behavior, and consumption of fruits, vegetables, and fat. STATISTICAL ANALYSES: Analysis of variance and linear regression analyses examined associations among dietary measures and acculturation variables, controlling for age, education, and city of residence. RESULTS: We developed 2 scales to assess dietary acculturation: the Western Dietary Acculturation Scale and the Chinese Dietary Acculturation Scale, measuring Western and Chinese eating behavior, respectively. Although the population in this study was a less-acculturated sample, most participants reported some Western dietary practices, such as drinking milk (78%), eating cheese (78%), eating at Western fast-food restaurants (56%), and eating between meals (72%). Younger, highly educated women employed outside the home had the highest Western dietary acculturation scores (P < .001). Women with high scores on the Western scale reported higher-fat dietary behaviors and had increased fruit and vegetable intake since immigration compared to those with lower scores (P < .001). There was good agreement between the dietary acculturation scales and traditional acculturation indicators (P < .001). APPLICATIONS: Nutrition programs for immigrant/minority groups may be more effective if they are tailored to level of dietary acculturation. Therefore, the ability to accurately assess dietary acculturation is an important component of nutrition education, interventions, and counseling in these populations.

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PubMed2002

Acculturation and adaptation of Soviet Jewish refugee adolescents: predictors of adjustment across life domains.

This study explores how acculturation is related to adaptation across different life spheres for 162 Soviet Jewish refugee adolescents in a suburban community in Maryland. Because the different contexts of refugee adolescents' lives vary in acculturative demands, different patterns of acculturation should be related to adaptation in different life spheres. The study uses a multidimensional measure of acculturation and assesses acculturation to both American and Russian cultures as it relates to psychological adaptation, peer relations, and school and family outcomes. Findings support the general ecological thesis that acculturation to different cultures is differentially related to adaptation across life domains. Acculturation to American culture predicted better grades and perceived support from American peers. Acculturation to Russian culture predicted perceived support from Russian peers. Both American acculturation and Russian acculturation predicted reduced loneliness and perceived support from parents. Further, different dimensions of acculturation, such as language and identity, were differentially related to adaptation. Implications for acculturation theory and measurement are drawn, and cautions are offered about the interpretation of acculturation studies using single proxies such as language use or preference.

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PubMed2005

Prevalence of breastfeeding and acculturation in Hispanics: results from NHANES 1999-2000 study.

BACKGROUND: A more current estimate to evaluate ethnic and acculturation differences in breastfeeding is warranted, given the rapid growth of the Hispanic population in the United States and the proliferation of breastfeeding promotion programs. The study objective was to describe current national estimates of the prevalence of breastfeeding and evaluate differences in reasons not to breastfeed by acculturation status. METHODS: Secondary data analysis of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2000 was performed on a nationally representative sample of non-Hispanic white women born in the U.S. and Hispanic women with at least one live birth. Acculturation status among Hispanics was assessed using a validated language scale, and prevalence of breastfeeding was based on maternal self-report. RESULTS: Prevalence of breastfeeding was higher in less acculturated Hispanic women (59.2%) than high acculturated Hispanic women (33.1%) and white women (45.1%). Less acculturated Hispanic women were more likely to cite their child's physical/medical condition as a reason not to breastfeed (53.1%), whereas whites and more acculturated Hispanics were more likely to cite their child preferred the bottle (57.5% and 49.8%, respectively). A logistic regression analysis revealed no significant differences in likelihood to breastfeed between non-Hispanic whites and Hispanics after controlling for education, age, and income. Higher acculturated women were less likely to breastfeed their children than low acculturated women (95% CI: 0.14-0.40) even after education, age, and income were taken into account. CONCLUSIONS: Acculturation differences in prevalence of breastfeeding and reasons not to breastfeed may be the result of attitudinal changes that occur due to acculturation. Further research into the acculturation process and its impact on breastfeeding may help to prevent the decline in breastfeeding that occurs as mothers become more acculturated. Meanwhile, patient education that addresses women's perceptions of the child's health condition and benefits of breastfeeding would be helpful.

Acculturation↗
PubMed2004

Higher fat intake and lower fruit and vegetables intakes are associated with greater acculturation among Mexicans living in Washington State.

OBJECTIVE: To examine associations of diet with acculturation among Hispanic immigrants from Mexico to Washington state and to compare dietary patterns of Hispanic with non-Hispanic white residents. DESIGN: Data are part of the baseline assessment for a community-randomized cancer prevention trial. The Fat-Related Diet Habits questionnaire and the National 5-A-Day for Better Health program dietary assessment instruments were used to collect data on fat and fruit and vegetable intake, respectively. Data were also collected on demographic characteristics and acculturation status. SUBJECTS/SETTING: A total of 1,689 adult Hispanic and non-Hispanic white residents of 20 communities in the Yakima Valley, WA, completed in-person interviews. STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED: Mixed model regression analyses tested associations of acculturation with diet. These models compared the fat and the fruit and vegetable intake of Hispanics vs non-Hispanic white residents. Additional analyses compared the diets of highly acculturated Hispanics with low-acculturated Hispanics. All models included age, sex, income, and education and were also adjusted for the random effect of community. RESULTS: Dietary patterns varied by ethnicity and acculturation status. On average, compared with non-Hispanic white residents, Hispanics consumed one more serving of fruits and vegetables per day (P<.001). Dietary habits changed as Hispanics acculturated to the United States. Highly acculturated Hispanics ate fewer servings of fruits and vegetables per day compared with those not highly acculturated (P<.05). Highly acculturated Hispanics had slightly higher, but not statistically significant, scores on the Fat-Related Diet Habits questionnaire, which corresponds to a higher fat intake, compared with low-acculturated Hispanics. The early dietary changes made on acculturation included adding fat at the table to breads and potatoes. APPLICATIONS/CONCLUSIONS: Nutrition professionals should encourage their Hispanic clients to maintain their traditional dietary practices, such as a high intake of fruits and vegetables and eating bread and potatoes without added fat.

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PubMed2003

Acculturation and parental attachment in Asian-American adolescents' alcohol use.

PURPOSE: To test whether the degree of acculturation predicts subsequent alcohol use among Asian-American adolescents, and to test the moderating effect of parental attachment. METHODS: This was a prospective study using a subsample of the National Longitudinal Adolescent Health data set. A nationally representative sample of 714 Asian-American boys (n = 332) and girls (n = 382) in grades 7-12 was analyzed. In-home self-report data were collected on two types of acculturation status, alcohol use, demographics, and parental attachment. After controlling for acculturation status and background variables at Wave I, logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the odds ratios to assess the association between acculturation and alcohol use at Wave II for adolescents. RESULTS: Asian-American adolescents with the highest level of acculturation (English use at home, born in the United States) were identified as the highest risk group. For adolescents with low parental attachment, the odds of alcohol use were 11 times greater in the highly acculturated group than in the least acculturated group. However, the odds of alcohol use for adolescents with moderate or high levels of parental attachment did not vary across acculturation groups. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, a greater level of acculturation was associated with greater alcohol use. However, when parental attachment was taken into account, highly acculturated adolescents with moderate or high parental attachment had no greater risk than adolescents with same levels of parental attachment who were less acculturated. Thus, it appears that acculturation per se was not a risk factor unless it was accompanied by a low level of parental attachment.

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PubMed1997

The effects of acculturative stress on incarcerated Alaska Native and non-Native men.

The relationship of acculturative status, acculturative stress, and interpersonal violence was examined in a study consisting of 73 incarcerated Alaska Native and non-Native men. The instruments used were the Acculturation Scale, Padilla SAFE Acculturative Stress Measure, Conflict Tactics Scale, Rorschach test, and the Perceived Stress Scale. Results found few inmates in the marginal group and no relationship between acculturative status and acculturative stress. Native inmates had significantly higher levels of acculturative stress than non-Native inmates, and other measures of stress did not discriminate between these two groups. Only non-Native inmates had higher levels of interpersonal violence related to acculturative stress, but their experience of acculturative stress was compounded by perceived, chronic, and situational stress. Apparently, non-Native inmates' feelings of acculturative stress are actually a sense of being discriminated against unrelated to their ethnicity. Bicultural inmates had significantly higher levels of violence than assimilated inmates did. For these inmates, acculturative stress is not the link between cultural conflict and interpersonal violence, but attempting to be a part of both cultures may be. The problem for these inmates seems to be in adapting to their cultural orientation, not in the orientation itself. While in prison, many native men seem to cope by renewing their cultural and spiritual practices, which may be providing them with a cultural identity they did not possess before incarceration. Acculturative status may need to be viewed as a continuum and a conscious choice. Implications for treatment and further research are discussed.

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PubMed2004

Acculturation and dietary habits of Korean Americans.

This is the first study to investigate how food and nutrient intakes vary with the levels of acculturation of Korean Americans using a dietary assessment tool tested for validity and reliability. The respondents were Korean Americans (n 486) resident in the Greater New York metropolitan area, USA. They were divided into two groups according to the total score of acculturation: low- and high-acculturated groups. Using a food-frequency questionnaire and a modified Suinn-Lew Asian self-identity acculturation scale, differences in the frequencies of food items, food groups and nutrient intakes consumed were analysed by level of acculturation. The low-acculturated group tended to consume significantly more rice, mixed rice, soyabean paste chigae (pot stew), saengsun (fish) chigae, kimchi chigae, other fish broiled or baked, eggs, kimchi, spinach, persimmons, and white or brown sugar in coffee or tea. The high-acculturated group demonstrated a statistically greater tendency to consume bread, cereal, spaghetti, ham, green salad, sweetcorn, chocolate, candies and diet soft drinks. The more acculturated an individual, the more significant was the tendency to consume sweets. The more acculturated group had significantly (P<0.05) higher intakes of % energy from total fat, thiamin, vitamin E and folate, while the low-acculturated group consumed greater amounts of Na, niacin and dietary fibre. The information from the present study can be used to describe dietary habits according to various aspects of acculturation, and allows a better understanding of the dynamics of acculturation and dietary habits.

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